Mira Stupica

Miroslava "Mira" Stupica (; née Todorović; 17 August 1923 – 19 August 2016) was a Serbian actress and First Lady of Yugoslavia from 1980 to 1981 as the second wife of President Cvijetin Mijatović.

Stupica was best known for her work in the theatre, but also had an extensive career in television and films. Stupica was popular for over 60 years and was celebrated as the ‘actress of the century’ by her peers, she is considered one of the best Serbian actresses of all time.

Early life Miroslava Todorović was born in Gnjilane, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes as the first child of Serb parents—Danica Stanišić from Livno and Radomir Todorović from Orašac, both gymnasium teachers. After Miroslava, the couple had three more children, all boys: Predrag (died at the age of two), Zoran (died at the age of three), and Borivoje, who would go on to become a famous and accomplished actor himself.

Following the couple's teaching postings, the family later moved to Gornji Milanovac, in central Serbia, where Miroslava's father, a talented violinist, died young in 1932, and then to Aranđelovac, before eventually settling in Belgrade where Mira graduated secondary school at the city's Trade Academy (Trgovačka akademija).

Career Theatre Todorović began acting during high school by enrolling in and completing the Artistic Theatre's acting studio in Belgrade, where she soon began acting professionally in 1940 after being noticed by Viktor Starčić. Many of her performances are considered to be anthology roles in Serbian theatre.

Apart from Petrunjela, others include: Živka (The Cabinet minister’s wife by Branislav Nušić), Joan of Arc (Saint Joan by George Bernard Shaw), Colombe (by Jean Anouilh), Grusha Vashnadze (The Caucasian Chalk Circle by Bertold Brecht), Lucietta (Le baruffe chiozzotte by Carlo Goldoni, Commissar (An Optimistic Tragedy by Vsevolod Vishnevsky), Glorija (by Ranko Marinković), Mirandolina (The Mistress of the Inn by Carlo Goldoni), Melita (Leda by Miroslav Krleža), Signora Ignazia (Tonight We Improvise by Luigi Pirandello), Mary (Mary fights with the angels by Pavel Kohout), Chérubin (The Marriage of Figaro by Beaumarchais), Ljubica (Đido by Janko Veselinović), Grushenka (The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky), Alexandra Negina (Talents and Admirers by Aleksandr Ostrovsky), Danica (Ljubav by Milan Đoković), Madame Sans-Gêne (by Victorien Sardou), Actress (L'Otage by Paul Claudel), Baroness Castelli-Glembay (Messrs. Glembay by Miroslav Krleža), Nastasya Filipovna (The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Jenny Diver (The Threepenny Opera by Bertrold Brecht), Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, and Lady Milford (Intrigue and Love by Friedrich Schiller). Her final role was Princess Ksenija of Montenegro in the drama of the same name by in 1994.

Film Although predominantly a theatrical actress, she landed several prominent film roles, especially in the 1950s and 1960s. She made her feature film debut in 1951 film Bakonja fra Brne by Fedor Hanžeković, Španac (1982) and Otvorena vrata (1995).

Personal life In 1943, at the age of 19, she married popular Serbian actor and famous playboy Milivoj "Mavid" Popović (1909–94), who was 14 years her senior.

Widowed, in 1973, she married communist politician Cvijetin Mijatović, remaining with him until his death on 15 November 1993. From 15 May 1980 to 15 May 1981, Mijatović presided over the Yugoslav Presidency, the country's collective presidency, making Stupica Yugoslavia's first lady in that period.

Apart from her popular actor brother Bora Todorović, her nephew, Bora’s son Srđan, is a musician, a former member of Ekaterina Velika and Disciplin A Kitschme, as well as a popular actor in Serbian cinema since the mid-1980s.

In 2015, she settled at a retirement home in the Belgrade borough of Zemun.

On 10 March 2016 Stupica suffered a stroke, and after months without leaving the hospital, died on 19 August 2016.

Honours/Accolades

Stupica was awarded the Award of the Federal Government of FNRJ in 1949 and Sedmojulska nagrada (at the time the highest government award in Serbia) in 1960.

She also won two awards at Sterijino pozorje in Novi Sad, the most important theatrical festival in Serbia, three Golden Lauren Wreath awards at MES in Sarajevo, and the Ljubiša Jovanović award in Šabac in 1986. Stupica was awarded the highest theatrical awards for lifetime achievement in Serbian theatre, including Dobričin prsten in 1981, Statuette of Joakim Vujić in 1985 and lifetime achievement awards at Sterijino pozorje in 1984 and at the Dani Zorana Radmilovića festival in Zaječar in 2013. At Pula Film Festival, the top film festival in former Yugoslavia, she won two best actress awards, in 1954 (Stojan Mutikaša) and the Golden Arena in 1966 (Roj). In 1969 she and Miodrag Petrović Čkalja won an award as the best acting couple of the year (Stupica for TV Bukvar). In 2006 she won an award for the best supporting female role in Seven and a half and in 2007, the Pavle Vuisić award, the highest film acting award in Serbia, for her lifetime achievement in the movies.

In 2001, on the celebration of her 60-years of acting. Stupica on the stage publicly called for establishing the Velika Žanka award (Great Žanka), in honor of Žanka Stokić (1887–1947), today generally considered the best theatrical Serbian actress ever, pointing out that there are no appropriate awards for actresses in their prime, when they are too old for the debutant awards and still too young for the life-time awards. In 2002, it was announced that a new award would be established the next year, under the name of Žanka Stokić award. Mira Stupica was the president for life of the jury and the award has been awarded yearly ever since.

On 23 September 2013, an exhibition titled Mira Stupica – actress of the century was held in the Museum of the National Theatre in Belgrade.

In 2000, she published her autobiography Šaka soli (A handful of salt). The book, which was written in a specific, almost scenic style,

Roles Theatre (selected) Year Title Role Author 1941 The Marriage of Figaro Chérubin William Shakespeare 1942 Zona Zamfirova Ruška Federico García Lorca 1955 Glorija Glorija Branislav Nušić 1959 The Threepenny Opera Jenny Diver Radmila Vojvodić "Madame Sans-Gêne" Catherine Hübscher Victorien Sardou L'Otage Actress Paul Claudel Intrigue and Love Lady Milford Friedrich Schiller Fuenteovejuna Laurencia Lope de Vega Twelfth Night Viola William Shakespeare The Lower Depths Vassilisa Maxim Gorky

Filmography Year English title Original title Role Director 1951 Bakonja fra Brne Bakonja fra Brne Maša Fedor Hanžeković 1953 The Parvenus Jara gospoda Ančka Bojan Stupica 1953 I Was Stronger Bila sam jača Zora Gustav Gavrin 1954 Stojan Mutikaša Stojan Mutikaša Anđa Fedor Hanžeković 1955 Hanka Hanka Ajkuna Slavko Vorkapić 1956 In the Net U mreži Višnja Bojan Stupica 1957 Little Man Mali čovek Nada Žika Čukulić 1960 The Fourteenth Day Dan četrnaesti Kristina Zdravko Velimirović 1964 Destination Death Muški izlet Miroslava Wolfgang Staudte 1964 People’s Deputy Narodni poslanik Pavka Stole Janković 1966 The Swarm Roj Stojanka Mića Popović 1966 Before the War Pre rata Sarka Vuk Babić 1967 Palm among the Palms Palma među palmama Palma Milo Đukanović 1968 The Sun of Another Sky Sunce tuđeg neba Rosa Milutin Kosovac 1968 The Tough Ones Delije Lepša Mića Popović 1969 A Bloody Fairytale Krvava bajka Piljak’s mother Tori Janković 1969 A Certain Distant Light Neka daleka svjetlost Uroš’s wife Josip Lešić 1971 Breakfast with the Devil Doručak sa đavolom Olga Miroslav Antić 1972 The Stars are the Eyes of warriors Zvezde su oči ratnika Nana Tori Janković 1972 How to Die Kako umreti Miki Stamenković 1973 Mortal Spring Samrtno proleće Aunt Ema Miguel Iglesias Bonns & Stevan Petrović 1982 Blasphemy Sablazan Miloš’s nana Dragovan Jovanović 2006 Seven and a Half Sedam i po Milica Miroslav Momčilović 2011 The Parade Parada Granny Olga Srđan Dragojević

Television Year Original title Role Notes 1959 Dundo Maroje Petrunjela TV movie 1961 Siromašni mali ljudi TV movie 1967 Volite se ljudi TV series; 1 episode 1967 Zabavlja vas Mija Aleksić TV show; 1 episode 1967 Noćna kafana Short 1968 Parničari Peasant woman TV series; 1 episode 1968 Maksim našeg doba TV series; 1 episode 1968 Kalendar Jovana Orlovića Caca TV movie 1968–1969 TV Bukvar Kika Bibić TV series 1969 Preko mrtvih Hristina Petrović TV movies 1970 Mirina TV stupica TV series 1971 Sve od sebe Mini-series 1971 Operacija 30 slova TV series 1971 Jedan čovek – jedna pesma TV series short 1972 Ženski razgovori TV series 1972 Selo bez seljaka TV series; 1 episode 1972 Slava i san Mother TV movie 1972 Nesporazum Marta TV movie 1973 Težak put TV movie 1976 Odluka Dušanka TV movie 1976 Poseta stare dame Klara Zahanasijan TV movie 1977 Zovem se Eli Mother TV movie 1978 Gospodarev zet TV movie 1981 Sedam sekretara SKOJ-a Zlatko Šnajder’s mother TV series 1982 Priče preko pune linije Rajna Prokić TV series; 1 episode 1982 Španac Žikica Jovanović Španac’s mother Mini series 1983 Imenjaci Mira TV series; 1 episode 1985 Priče iz fabrike Emilija Bošnjaković Babac TV series 1987 Ženska priča Majka TV movie 1989 Ranjenik Old woman TV series 1990 Gala korisnica: Atelje 212 kroz vekove Herself TV special 1995 Otvorena vrata Kristina Trobožić TV series; 6 episodes